Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the tensions of navigating the uncertainty of decolonization and its subsequent demands on Saharawi citizen-refugees and the future Saharawi state.

Paper long abstract:

From refugee camps in Algeria, Saharawis who have been displaced from Western Sahara since 1976 have continuously fought for the decolonization of the non-self-governing territory. This battle was first fought in the form of a war against Morocco. In 1991, the UN brokered a ceasefire promised to bring an end to the conflict through a referendum on self-determination. However, Saharawis still remained confined to the refugee camps in Algeria and the promise of the referendum continues to grow uncertain. Saharawi political leadership and youth activists have tried a range of tactics to demonstrate their readiness for sovereignty. Bound up within these protests are critiques of the Moroccan state that are juxtaposed with the promise of a "good" and democratic Saharawi state. In the wake of the uncertainty of the referendum the pressure has continued to mount as Saharawis seek to maintain the image of an ideal state in exile. This paper explores the tensions of navigating the uncertainty of decolonization and its subsequent demands on Saharawi citizen-refugees and the future Saharawi state. How does this uncertainty produce particular forms of silence in ethnographic work and how might anthropologists navigate those silences?